My name is Stephane Leung and as you can probably tell from the first name, I am a native Quebecer and Montrealer. I’ve been living in Chicago for the past six months, but have been following Quebec news whenever I have a minute to skim the Montreal Gazette headlines. The recent ploy by the health minister to force family physicians to take on unreasonable workloads is just one of the many problems that face this great province of ours.

I was lucky enough to spend my entire life in Montreal and went to medical school at McGill University. I then went on to specialize as a heart surgeon at the MUHC where I graduated this past June as one of eight new Canadian heart surgeons in the entire country. That’s about 10 years of training and studying after my undergraduate degree, and I can’t see myself doing anything else. However, what never occurred to me throughout my training was how difficult it would be to find a permanent job once my seemingly infinite training would end. I am now spending a year in Chicago learning more complex cardiac surgery with one of the United States’ foremost cardiac surgeons, but I have no real prospect of a job in La Belle Province afterward. What’s worse is that when I attempt to explain my departure from Montreal to my friends and family, the assumption is that I’ve fled for greener pastures. On a recent gathering with my close friends from Montreal in other medical specialties, their situations were similar in that they were moving south of the border despite their intent to stay in Quebec.

I love what I do and most wouldn’t understand the sacrifices I have more over the years to get to where I am. And now, I am unable to return to my home to practise what I’ve trained so hard for. Consequently, as the quality of primary care medicine declines with Bill 20, and as many Canadian-trained medical specialists flee the province, who do you think will suffer most?

As for me, I am currently applying for jobs in the land of the free.

Stephane Leung, Chicago

There is so much that is odious about Bill 20, one does not know where to begin. Let’s start with its dictatorial nature and its utter contempt for doctors and patients alike.

Health Minister Gaétan Barrette pretends to know what is best for patients, but this proposed legislation is just a cynical attempt to scapegoat doctors for what is a very sick health-care system, a system that has been dismantled by previous all-knowing health ministers. He is just another in a long line of such ministers.

How can a surgeon reduce his waiting list where there isn’t any operating-room time available, nor enough personnel to staff the ORs because of deep government cutbacks? Can you make bricks without mortar? More timely access to GPs and medical care is a laudable goal, but to what avail if each appointment will be five minutes in order to crank up the volume of patients? This will serve to make the numbers look better, but is it better patient care?

A GP will be held responsible for a certain minimum number of patients, but if these patients see another doctor for whatever reason — convenience, opportunity or a second opinion — the GP will be docked 30 per cent of his salary. GPs cannot stop their patients from seeing other doctors and this measure will plant distrust between doctors and their patients.

As president of the Federation of Medical Specialists, Barrette argued that doctors are hardworking and underpaid, and six months later as health minister, he said they were lazy and overpaid.

The hypocrisy and opportunism are breathtaking. Many of Barrette’s editorials in the Specialists’ quarterly magazine alluded to himself as a general leading his “troops” into battle against the enemy. Now his former “troops” are the enemy. Could you work for a boss who is constantly denigrating your work? Eventually, most reasonable people would just say take this job and …

What is surprising to me is that Premier Philippe Couillard, himself a former health minister and an intelligent and reasonable man, has not intervened to rein in Barrette before he finishes off what’s left of our health-care system.

I totally agree with letter-writer Cynthia Stolovitz. I have been seeing my own wonderful physician for over 30 years and I am so grateful to have her. Sometimes my visits can be short, but sometimes I need extra time and she is always very willingly to give it to me. I am able to get an appointment within a week as she specifically kept her practice manageable to be able to provide such good care. I know she also gives her time to outside clinics and has her own family to take care of. I do not want her to be penalized for doing such a superb job, nor do I want to be cut off within seven minutes of my visit.

We need more new doctors — and we can’t punish the hard-working ones we currently have.

We keep hearing how others are envious of Quebec’s social benefits such as free IVF, maternity and paternity leave, daycare, and so on, but few jurisdictions establish similar programs for their citizens. Could it be they are smarter than us and realize the level of taxation on all citizens to pay for these programs is too high a price to pay?

It is far too generous to offer free IVF treatment to anyone who applied regardless of age, income or whether or not they already had a child. With the limits set by Bill 20, we are still far ahead of many other jurisdictions.

No government can afford to pay for everything for everyone. Many programs should be scaled to income level. We are among the highest taxed people in North America and have the worst service: our health care is severely lacking; our education system (elementary through high school) is underfunded; our infrastructure is falling apart. Bureaucracy in Quebec needs serious cuts; our politicians need to make their own concessions regarding their salaries, salary increases, and benefits. But that still won’t enable us to fund programs for everyone regardless of income level.

We need to start taking care of ourselves. The government is there to run the province not our lives.

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